Zurawski puts Killie behind the eight ball

Having endured a week of ridicule and recrimination following their remarkable Scottish Cup exit, it was presumably a relief for the Celtic players simply to have attention refocused on the championship race and the protection of their healthy lead at the top of the table. Certainly, there was no evidence of any hangover from their miserable afternoon in Cumbernauld as they made a vibrant start to the match that was rewarded with a two-goal lead inside the opening quarter of an hour.

Kilmarnock, whose last victory at Parkhead was 50 years ago, have become accustomed to travelling to the east end of Glasgow more in hope than expectation and the portents of another unhappy visit surfaced after just two minutes. Gary Wales, back helping his defence as Celtic swarmed straight onto the offensive, made a typically clumsy striker's challenge on Stilian Petrov on the edge of the visitors' penalty area. It was prime position for the dead-ball expertise of Shunsuke Nakamura and the Japan international midfielder cashed in, curling the free-kick left-footed around the defensive wall and beyond goalkeeper Alan Combe's grasping left hand into the top corner of the net.

Artur Boruc, Celtic's Poland international goalkeeper, was required to make a fine one-handed save to deny Colin Nish a rapid equaliser that might have jarred Celtic's early rhythm, but instead it was the league leaders who doubled their advantage from the penalty spot after 15 minutes.

There was no question about the award, James Fowler tripping Petrov in desperation after Shaun Maloney's trickery down the left had stretched the Kilmarnock defence. The Celtic supporters chanted for Keane to take the spot-kick, but he remained unmoved. Maloney stepped forward to send Combe the wrong way and apparently put Celtic in cruise control.

That would have been the case had Combe not made an excellent save from Maciej Zurawski, but the match regained a degree of uncertainty when Kilmarnock were awarded a penalty on 24 minutes. Keane threw up his hands in frustration as his central defensive partner Stephen McManus sent Nish sprawling with a reckless challenge and Steven Naismith beat Boruc emphatically from 12 yards to revitalise the Ayrshire side.

Keane, who was drawing applause from the home fans with his assured and accurate passing from the back, prevented an equaliser from Kilmarnock before the interval with an alert block on Naismith's shot. Celtic supporters were less appreciative of Keane's contribution to the goal that drew Kilmarnock level at 2-2 five minutes into the second half of what had suddenly become a wildly unpredictable contest. The Irishman's hesitancy saw him dispossessed on the left edge of the Celtic penalty area, allowing Kilmarnock captain Garry Hay to swing over a cross that substitute Danny Invincibile rose to head home from around eight yards.

Celtic managed to regain the lead before any damaging apprehension crept into their play. Maloney's menacingly delivered corner from the left was cleared as far as Keane whose shot from the edge of the penalty area was blocked inside a crowded six-yard box. In the ensuing melee, McManus managed to scramble the ball into the net.

It did not subdue the renewed sense of belief Kilmarnock had gained from their earlier comeback and had Nish been more alert to a blunder from Boruc, they might have levelled matters quickly. Instead, their task reached daunting proportions once more when Celtic made it 4-2 in 66 minutes. Ross Wallace, who had been venturing forward regularly from his left-back beat, provided a cutback for Zurawski whose shot was diverted onto the underside of the crossbar by Combe who then grappled the ball away. To the fury of the goalkeeper, however, the match officials ruled that the ball had crossed the line before his intervention, giving Zurawski his eighth goal of the season.

Man of the Match SHAUN MALONEY The diminutive Scotland striker relished being switched to a role wide on the left of the Celtic midfield that afforded him ample opportunity to utilise his pace and close control to trouble the Kilmarnock defence. He was a bundle of energy, tracking back diligently as well as providing his team's most potent attacking threat.